Chairman’s note – Feb 2020

Posted February 12, 2020

This is the first of a monthly briefing for Members on the work being done by your Executive and matters of note in the club.

PLANS FOR 2020
As referred to in my opening address at the AGM we have a number of items that require actioning during the year. In our first month the Executive have agreed on which of those items are critical for this year and that we can afford to complete. The budget for these items for this year alone is approximately €90k and will be funded from subscriptions, our Pitch 1 advertising Project, (see below), grant aid and support from a generous sponsor, Bedford Consulting. The tasks can be separated into two main areas. On the playing side it is primarily pitch development, including stop nets for Pitch 8, goalposts for Pitch 1, new nets and flags for the main pitches and improvement of pitch surfaces, primarily Pitch 6. In the clubhouse a comprehensive renovation of the flat roof is the most expensive item and we also have repairs to the ageing mechanical and electrical systems in the club, improvements to our fire, CCTV and alarm systems, new tables for the hall and renovation of the bathrooms to include plumbing and décor.
You will have noticed that we have almost completed a project to retro-fit LED lighting in the building, car park, mound field and the last step is to trial LED lighting for the AW. This initiative has many advantages, including an improvement to the lighting quality particularly on the Mound Field and hopefully All Weather, a safety enhancement in the car park and an ongoing cost saving on electricity bills. We also took the opportunity to repair a number of lights that were not working. We are leasing the equipment over 5 years and offsetting the cost against energy savings. Thanks to Marcus Reynolds for his work on this. Stage 1 of improving the bathrooms has been a new venting pipe installed by Groundforce last week which will significantly ease a long term odour issue in the dressing rooms and hopefully the clubhouse. Thanks also to Brian Harris and Coolock Glass who have repaired a number of windows that have been broken for some time.
Whilst we do all of this we also have a list of items that we believe are necessary but for which we have not yet identified funding. These include further work on Pitch quality, replacement of windows and doors, stop nets for Pitch 7, repair of the Barrell (higher) Roof. These have a total probable cost of up to €100k.
There are also 2 larger capital items, firstly the replacement of the surface on the all-weather which is now past end of life and secondly lighting of Pitch 1. We were not successful in a recent Sports Capital Grant Application but have appealed that decision on technical grounds, the outcome of the appeal will impact how we move forward on these items. The All Weather MUST be done almost certainly no later than next year and the Executive are actively investigating how to fund it.

GAMES & COACHING POLICY
On the playing side the Games Development Committee have launched a Games and Coaching Development Policy Document and this has been endorsed by the Executive. The document has been some time in development and is very comprehensive. It is available on our website and I would encourage every Member to read it and to operate within its guidelines which are designed for the long term benefit of the club.

SUBSCRIPTIONS
The Executive has received some feedback in relation to the subscriptions for 2020. In response we are establishing a Working Group to review subscriptions and make recommendation to the executive for future years. The Terms of Reference are being finalised and we will then invite interested Members to take part. As always, if any Member has difficulty in making payments we would encourage them to contact the Club Registrar in absolute confidence, he has discretion to make suitable arrangements.

NEW SEASON
On the playing side activity is ramping up and our Senior Teams will return to competitive action over the next few weeks. Of particular note is our Senior Footballers return to Division 1 with an away fixture vs St Vincents on February 16th. The activity levels in the club have increased greatly in the last few years, please be supportive of the Pitch Allocator and respect the Guidelines issued to Mentors, it’s the only way we can make it all work for everyone.

PITCH 1
For those who are wondering, Pitch 1 is scheduled to open in April and we will confirm exact arrangements closer to the time. The surface looks great and drainage is exceptional as you would expect but we want to give the sod a few weeks of warm weather and growth to enhance the longer term performance. In the meantime, we are launching a campaign to sell Pitch Advertising Slots to businesses. An attractive package for 3 years has been put together and the intention is to raise in excess of €50k for the club over 3 years. Contact Andrew Rittweger if you or the organisation where you work would like more details.

FUTURE COMMUNICATIONS
It is our intention to issue these updates monthly or where there is a matter of particular significance. We are also looking at our other channels of communication with Members and will at all times be trying to make sure that we keep everyone informed.

Cecil Ryan
Chairman
On Behalf of the Executive